Sunday, August 3, 2014

Hidden treasure in a field...

Okay, Concordia University is NOT in a field. But it is a hidden treasure. Every time I come here I am in awe of the campus, the faculty, the resources, and the opportunity here -- for student and for the Church!
.
Concordia Bronxville no longer has any program of church music. Other Concordias have seen their programs dwarfed by other majors and are no longer the strong center they once were. And then there is Seward. In this small town a half an hour from Lincoln, there is Concordia. The grounds are immaculate. The buildings many and ever being improved. The church work programs at Seward form more than the mere fringe of the many different varieties of the student population. They have a wonderful Casavant order in a delightful music performance hall. They have a ton of practice organs and the resources of St. John Church across the street. But the best is the faculty.

If you have a love for church music. If hymns inspire and encourage you more than you can say. If you close your eyes in heaven at the sound of a good choir and good choral and churchly music. If you love these and are concerned that they continue within the life of the Church. If you have a few bucks to spare (well, more than a few), why not consider helping to endow some of these professorships at Seward so that this program can continue, grow, and expand without concern for the always watching budget minders in the Church. It would be a great thing if we could endow one or two or even three or more music professorships at Seward. This would not benefit Concordia (well, okay, sure it would) but more importantly they would benefit the larger church.

I have a challenge for our readers. If you can, great. If you know someone who can, great. But lets flood the administration with letters of insistence and the cash to back it up to make sure that a Concordia like Seward continues to have church music education at its core and center and not as a sideline. Are you ready to help me?

My goal is to drop out the remaining hairs on Dr. Joe Herl's head and see just about all the music faculty endowed. Are you with me? It takes a couple of million per professorship but spread out over the many people who know the value of good church music, it is a bargain. Think about it. Give a gift. Make a legacy. Pass on a heritage.

3 comments:

Anonymous
said...

"And then there is Seward. In this small town a half an hour from Lincoln, there is Concordia. The grounds are immaculate. The buildings many and ever being improved."

Well, duh, it is Nebraska. The whole place is like that... because of the people there who think they should be doing their best. Instead of being all hung up on trying to project status, they are actually just trying to do an honest to goodness GOOD JOB.

As a graduate of Concordia University Nebraska (way back when it was Concordia Teacher College) and as a former member of Concordia's A Cappella choir, it is great to hear someone praising the music program there. I have the pleasure to know and work with many graduates of their music program and also to sing and hear music composed by current and former music profs and students from there. Even though I wasn't a music major I know that the impact of the music program there is huge.

Live Traffic Feed

Our Means of Grace Window

The Window

This is the Means of Grace Window that is above the altar of Grace Lutheran Church where I serve. It reminds us of the keys (confession and absolution), the wheat(the bread which is the Body of Christ), the cup (which is His Blood), the Word (Scripture), and the Pastoral Office (the red stole). In this one wonderful window we see the treasures of the Church in the Word and Sacraments and I love that it is available for all to see. I realize that this image has been stolen all over the internet but it is a real window, a copyrighted image, belonging to Grace Lutheran Church, Clarksville, Tennessee, which has kindly allowed my use of it...

About Me

I have been a Lutheran Pastor for more than 37 years, serving in the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod, and the Pastor of Grace Lutheran Church in Clarksville, TN, in my 25th year here. I have a lot of thoughts (obviously not all of equal weight or importance) and this place is where you meet some of those meandering thoughts from this pastoral mind.

Why begin a blog?

I spend a few minutes a few times a week checking out several different blogs. Some are on-line forums and others are the musings of friends, who, like me, are Lutheran Pastors. Since so many spend so much time in front of their computer, I am sharing a few thoughts in this medium. So join the conversation and see what pops up.